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29.139 152
Ausschnitt aus:
The Deily Telegraph, Lenden
vom:
——

ADELPHT FLAT SOCIETT.
DAS MARCHEN.“
An omelette may be a very good thing, ont
an omelette which begins to take itself scriously
has mistaken its vocation. The mere thought
of such a disaster is, you will agree, depressing.
Parts of that omelette might, perhaps, remain
light-bearted and delectable, but che pars
sopprossed by the discovory that life was real
and earnest would become an exercise for
patience. And just such is Herr Schnitzler's
Das Märchen, which in Wm
Mesers. C. E. Wheeler and Granville Barker,
was prodused by the Adelphi Play Society at
the Little Theatre last night. There were in¬
terludes in it when one had nothing to do but
enjoy. All through it one cam“ upon ecraps
of wit of excellently titillating flavour. But we
spent a long time in the listless conaumption of
leuthery debate abcut old, old problems
of the importance of a woman’s pasts to
che man who arrives when thcy are
over. Of course, a problem of conduct may
make a play, though it is older than the ever¬
lasting bills. Before we come to ehe end tothe
world many a great phie will be written on this
same oid, much ihaminated, unilluminated
matter But nothing will be written that
matters now uulees the people of the play are
alive enougb and big enough to interest our
emotions, or unless the author has something
new to tell us about what be ongbé to do, and
ahe ought to auffer. Herr Schnitzler appeais
tous in neither way. His power of making cha¬
racter, amusing as it is, is get much more. His
real peopie are alive in their wit and their oddfty
and tbeir 4# im, but we never discover in
chem more Aiul than suffices for after-dinner
emotions, und not much more mind than will
enabie them to laugh at somebody eise. There.
füre when we ur#esked te gungern oureclves
with what they feel about thethings that make
tragedy, we can only remark with discomfort
that an omelette bad better nou try to be a joint.
VIE DE BOHEME.
If you can imagine some of the“ Scènes de
Ia Vie de Bobame' overiaid with a rather solid,
Trather conventional treatment of the man in
love with a woman of several paste, yon have
" Das Märchen.?' But that description, and,
indeed, any description, is unfair, for yon
have to leave out the effect of the wit,
which even in the most tedious scenes is bever
long absent. Thereiore ne mug wery welt We
grateful to Mr. Granvilie Burker and hit col
laborator for extending pur Englis## acqusipn¬
ance with Herr Schaitaler, Our gratituds tn
che Adelphi Play Seriety for puttäng.“ Dus
Märchen’ upon the stage is not undliged Thr
performance, though we give all etedit for
earnest intention, bed not much vivacity, and
still less distinction, and made the Play sen
must more sodgy chan was nen
It will not take lung to tell diie steurg. W'i dres
taken to the respectable stratum of Viennenus
Bobemis. Fanny Theren was an actress, und
Clara Theren tanght musle, and chey bothited
with their old mather in a Hat which regelved all
tha vorld, but by no means ite wife, in free und
#nsy styie. Ciara had an admirer of the mont
stolid virtue, and was herseif immsculate.
Fanny, the actress, also was admired, by a
journalist who did rot know, though be mar
have guessed, that she had had adventures. She
heard him arguing chivalrously Viat a man hat
no right to despise the woman no worse than
himself, and kissed bis hand passionately, For
she, you are to understand#r perhaps you had
better not be sure that gou understand, for she
is an actress—is desperntely in love wich him.
Add to all this a good Zeul of wit and half a
dezen excollent sketcher of Bohenns, and the
world that dallies with Bohemians, and yon
have the substance of the play.
For the rest is a long dissertion of the case
of Fanny and her past and her journalist.
Von are not able to feel that it i, life or even
a play. It is merely a tediots operation
dragging out and displaying all the conven¬
tional incidente in such a problem, all thecon¬
ventional arguments and conventional
omotions. Would it have seemed something
more appealing, would it have been more alive
if it bud been acted with passion? Certainly
chere are opportunities for a etrikingsplav
of acting which were missed last night. But,
however finels it had been acted, we do not
believe it would have seemed more than acting.
There is no life in it.
THE JOIRNALTST’S WAY.
The journalist dischvers that Fanny’scareer
has not been a mnattei of one adventure, but
that she has passed from hand to hand. He
is still in love with her, after bis fashion. In
passing wemay be allowed to record that what¬
ever her iniquities
A man had given all other bliss
And all his earthly wealth for this,
To waste his soul in one kick
at him—if it had been possible to think of hira
as real. For if he were reai he would be a tad
beyond che bounds of all ordinary enddishnes
Vivise ion of a woman’s dietress, keeping her
dangling between hope and despair as to
whether he will deign to take her after all¬
these were the devices of the jonrnalist in love
But he never began to be allve, and it is idle
to waste indignation over puppets.
In the last act she had made a great sncces¬
at her theatre, and an agent came with a con¬
tract for St. Petereburg. Her sister, who wäs
abont tu zet up an iden! Cerman home with ber
stolid lover thought she had better go. Her
journa list also inchned to think she had better
go, tonk a long time to be decisive, gave a
speech or two, and finally made it rlear that
he was not for her. So she sent off her con¬
tract to the agent, and on her tragie despair
the curtain fell.
The scting, as we have indicated, was rather
well meant than illuminating. Nevertheles
some good work was done in the well-marked
parts. by Mr. Maurice Elvey, Mr. Nigel Barrie,
and Mr. Guy Rathbone.
S